Paper trimmer

ABSTRACT

A paper trimmer for individually trimming opposite sides of a paper sheet a predetermined amount having means for inducing a curl in the sheet for the purpose of both aligning the sheet and initiating its movement toward a pair of cutters without the assistance of the operator.

United States Patent James B. Knudsen Lewiston, N.Y.

Apr. 23, 1970 Jan. 1 l, 1972 Moore Business Forms, Inc. Niagara Falls, N.Y.

Inventor Appl. No. Filed Patented Assignee PAPER TRIMMER 8 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 83/105,

83/163, 83/176, 83/430 Int. Cl B26d 7/08 Field of Search 83/ 105,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,158,790 5/1939 Arthur 83/176 2,587,732 3/1952 .laeger 83/176 X 2,637,394 5/1953 Fey 83/176 X Primary ExaminerWil1iam S. Lawson Attorney-Watson, Cole, Grindle & Watson ABSTRACT: A paper trimmer for individually trimming opposite sides of a paper sheet a predetermined amount having means for inducing a curl in the sheet for the purpose of both aligning the sheet and initiating its movement toward a pair of cutters without the assistance of the operator.

PAPER TRIMMER This application relates generally to a paper trimmer and more particularly to a desk top device for trimming paper one at a time evenly and efficiently by reason of a curl induced in each paper sheet for passing it through a paper of paper cutters.

Oftentimes, it becomes necessary to trim sheets of paper down to a selected size from larger sized sheets which, for example, may be dimensioned in accordance with the metric system of measurements generally used in foreign countries. Also, sheets which need to be otherwise trimmed must be cut with a pair of scissors or other type cutter by the secretary or other personnel in the office and, if a sizable number of sheets are to be trimmed, time becomes the essence because the person who is trimming must take great care to insure accuracy and at the same time efficiently complete the job. For trimming single sheets many types of devices of the desk top variety are available, the most common one being the bar blade which is pivoted at one end and moves toward a straight edge to effect a cut. If it is required to frequently trim the above-mentioned type of metric-sized paper, much time is lost with the use of the swinging bar blade each time the sheet to be trimmed is accurately placed on the appropriate dimension line before trimming. Automatic trimmers have been therefore devised to speed up the trimming operation, although most of such devices are not found to accurately trim the paper along a straight line unless great care is exercised in properly aligning each sheet before or during the time the cutters are moving. Also, since the operator must at least initially move the sheet toward the cutters, such devices are not altogether safe for continued trimming operations. In order to obviate these difficulties, an apparatus has been devised for trimming paper one at a time on the desk top in a safe, accurate and efiicient manner not heretofore possible with other prior art devices.

The principal object of the invention is therefore to provide a paper trimmer which accurately aligns each sheet of paper before trimming without the need for initially propelling the sheet toward the cutters.

Another object of the invention is to provide a paper trimmer wherein such an alignment and initial propelling feature is effected by a curl induced in each sheet of paper before it moves by the cutters for trimming.

A further object of the present invention is to provide such a paper trimmer wherein the curl is induced by means of an abutment on a paper tray and the nip of a pair of spaced cutter rollers, the abutment and the pair of cutter rollers being spaced a distance less than the width of the paper to be trimmed lying therebetween.

A still further object of the instant design is to provide such a paper trimmer wherein feed rollers are provided for propelling each sheet of paper past the cutter rollers, the feed rollers and cutter rollers being mounted on each end of a shaft having an increased diameter between its ends so that the shaft merely contacts the top of the tray and thereby smoothens the paper as it passes by the cutters.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a paper trimmer of the type characterized wherein the end of the tray opposite the abutment end is upwardly curved so as to direct paper upwardly and outwardly away from the cutters after being trimmed. Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

.FIG. 1 is a right-hand perspective view showing the assembled paper trimmer according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a left-hand perspective view of the paper trimmer with its cover removed;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the trimmer taken substantially along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2, and

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the trimmer taken substantially along the line 4-4 of FIG. 2. Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference characters refer to like and corresponding parts throughout the several views, there is shown in FIG. 1 a right-hand perspective of the letter trimmer 10 according to the present invention, with a sheet S positioned therein before trimming. As can be seen, sheet S is somewhat curled in the direction of its width and, with specific reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, it can be seen that such a curl is induced by means of an upstanding lip 11 on a tray 12, for one side of the sheet, and by means of a pair of cutters 13 for the other side of the sheet. The cutters 13 each comprise a circular knife blade 14 mounted on opposite ends of a shaft 15, each rotary knife blade cooperating with a rotary die wheel 16 rotatably mounted below the shaft 15 so that each end of the sheet may be cut in a conventional manner as it passes by each of the cutters. The nip of the cutters as at 17, or the point of first intersection between the knife blade edge and the die wheel surface for each of the cutters are in alignment with one another and are together parallel to the understanding lip 11 since the shaft 15 is designed parallel with lip 11. The distance between the nips 17 and the lip 11 is equal to less than the width of the sheet S to be trimmed. In this way, the sheet S will bow or curl upwardly as it is placed between the nips and the lip 11.

A small motor 18 is mounted within the letter trimmer, as shown in FIG. 3, and is operatively connected with a drive gear 19 having gear teeth thereon for engagement with like teeth on a driven gear 21 mounted on shaft 15. Rotation of drive gear 19 by the motor therefore rotates the driven gear 21 and its attached shaft 15 in the direction of the arrow as shown in FIG. 3. After the sheet is placed in position between the nips 17 and the lip 11, as in FIG. 3, the motor 18 may be turned on simply by depressinga suitably provided starter button 22 shown in FIG. I whereupon the sides s of the sheet will be trimmed as they pass by each of the cutters 13.

With the description thus far, it can be seen that each sheet S to be trimmed is perfectly aligned, without the need for any adjustment or further alignment by reason of the pair of nips 17 being parallel to the upstanding lip 11. In this way, the trim line along each side s is always insured as being perpendicular to lip 11. Also, the induced curl of the sheet S effects an initial movement of the sheet toward the cutters before the motor is turned on, without the assistance of the operator since the springing action of the induced bow causes the forward edge of the paper sheet to move forwardly until the spring of the bow is completely dissipated. This propelling action is continued by the provision of a feed roller 23 mounted near each end of the shaft 15 with each roller cooperating with an idler roller 24 rotatably mounted below the shaft. Paper, therefore, passing between the nips of the rollers 23, 24 will be propeller forwardly beneath the shaft 15 after its initial start by the induced curl.

In order to insure that the sheet is completely flattened between its ends s during movement in a forward direction, the'shaft 15 is enlarged somewhat as at 15 between its ends as shown in FIG. 2 and in FIG. 4 so as to be in close clearance with the top surface of the tray 12. Accordingly, any creases or uneven surfaces of the sheet will be smoothed out by the portion 15 of the shaft during its forward movement by the rollers 23, 24.

In FIG. 1, it will be noted that a cover 25 is provided for enclosing the shaft and its cutter and feed rollers so that any exposure to the sharp knife blade cutters 14 is substantially avoided. On its wall which faces the upstanding lip 11, the cover 25 is provided with a short vertical mark 26 near each end for indicating the position of each knife blade with respect to the sheet when the cover is in place. This way, the operator can be assured that the knife blade will not trim the sheet along other than the intended trim line. Also, the side of the tray 12 opposite the lip 11 is bent upwardly as at 27 for deflecting the trimmed sheet upwardly and away from the cutters after it passes thereby.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that a simply, safe and highly effective trimming device has been described which relies and operates on the principle of an induced curl for the sheet to be trimmed to insure accurate alignment of the sheet without any need for adjustments and to avoid the necessity of initially propelling the sheet toward the cutters. It has been found that those sheets which are dimensioned to l 1.69 inches in length in accordance with the metric system of measurements can be easily trimmed to the standard l 1-inch length by simply setting the blades 14 as precisely l 1 inches apart on the shaft 15. The operator conveniently places a sheet in position as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 and after depressing the starter button receives the trimmed sheet as shown in its position of FIG. 4. As heretofore described, the sheet is accurately aligned for cutting along lines precisely perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of the sheet since the shaft 15 and therefore the nips 17 are designed to be precisely parallel to the upstanding lip 11. After the motor is turned on, the springing action of the induced curl causes the forward side of the sheet to move forwardly until it begins to pass beneath the feed rollers. At that time, the feed rollers propel the sheet beneath the enlarged portion of the shaft 15' and upwardly and outwardly therefrom against the upwardly bent portion 27.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. For example, the distance between each of the knife blades along the shaft may be varied and the space between the nips and the upstanding lip can be varied in order to accommodate different sizes of sheets for trimming. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims the invention may be practices otherwise than as specifically described.

I claim:

1. A paper trimmer for individually trimming opposite sides of a paper sheet a predetermined amount comprising a pair of spaced cutters and an abutment means, said cutters and said abutment means being arranged perpendicular to the sides of the sheet to be trimmed, and said cutters and said abutment means being spaced a distance equal to less than the width of the sheet to be trimmed thereby inducing a curl in each sheet placed therebetween whereby each such sheet is automatically aligned for trimming perpendicular to said abutment means and is automatically initiated in a forward direction toward said cutters by reason of the induced curl.

2. The paper trimmer according to claim 1 wherein said spaced cutters comprise a pair of rotary knife blades mounted on a rotatable shaft, each said blade cooperating with a rotatable die wheel mounted below such shaft.

3. The paper trimmer according to claim 1 further comprising a horizontal tray located beneath said shaft for supporting each sheet to be trimmed, and said abutment means comprising an upstanding lip along one side of said tray, whereby each sheet to be trimmed may be placed between said lip and the nip of each said space cooperating knife blades and die wheels for inducing the curl in each sheet to be trimmed.

4. The trimmer according to claim 3 further comprising a feed roller mounted on said shaft near each of said knife blades, and an idler roller rotatably mounted below said shaft associated with each said feed roller for propelling each sheet of paper past said cutters.

5. The trimmer according to claim 4 further comprising a hood member covering the entire length of said shaft, said hood member having indicia thereon facing said upstanding lip, said indicia consisting of a mark in alignment with each of said knife blades for indicating the position of said blades along said shaft.

6. The trimmer according to claim 5 wherein the diameter of said shaft is enlarged between its ends so as to be nearly in contact with the top of said tray for flattening each sheet of paper as it passes by said cutters.

7. The trimmer according to claim 6 wherein said tray extends upwardly along the side opposite said lip side for deflecting each sheet upwardly after passing by said cutters.

8. The trimmer according to claim 7 further comprising a motor means operatively connected to said shaft for rotating said knife blades and said feed rollers. 

1. A paper trimmer for individually trimming opposite sides of a paper sheet a predetermined amount comprising a pair of spaced cutters and an abutment means, said cutters and said abutment means being arranged perpendicular to the sides of the sheet to be trimmed, and said cutters and said abutment means being spaced a distance equal to less than the width of the sheet to be trimmed thereby inducing a curl in each sheet placed therebetween whereby each such sheet is automatically aligned for trimming perpendicular to said abutment means and is automatically initiated in a forward direction toward said cutters by reason of the induced curl.
 2. The paper trimmer according to claim 1 wherein said spaced cutters comprise a pair of rotary knife blades mounted on a rotatable shaft, each said blade cooperating with a rotatable die wheel mounted below such shaft.
 3. The paper trimmer according to claim 1 further comprising a horizontal tray located beneath said shaft for supporting each sheet tO be trimmed, and said abutment means comprising an upstanding lip along one side of said tray, whereby each sheet to be trimmed may be placed between said lip and the nip of each said space cooperating knife blades and die wheels for inducing the curl in each sheet to be trimmed.
 4. The trimmer according to claim 3 further comprising a feed roller mounted on said shaft near each of said knife blades, and an idler roller rotatably mounted below said shaft associated with each said feed roller for propelling each sheet of paper past said cutters.
 5. The trimmer according to claim 4 further comprising a hood member covering the entire length of said shaft, said hood member having indicia thereon facing said upstanding lip, said indicia consisting of a mark in alignment with each of said knife blades for indicating the position of said blades along said shaft.
 6. The trimmer according to claim 5 wherein the diameter of said shaft is enlarged between its ends so as to be nearly in contact with the top of said tray for flattening each sheet of paper as it passes by said cutters.
 7. The trimmer according to claim 6 wherein said tray extends upwardly along the side opposite said lip side for deflecting each sheet upwardly after passing by said cutters.
 8. The trimmer according to claim 7 further comprising a motor means operatively connected to said shaft for rotating said knife blades and said feed rollers. 